Visa’s (NYSE: V) U.S. payments volume report for the fourth quarter so far appears promising. Despite suspending operations in Russia since March 2022, the digital payment services provider has been able to increase volume by 10% year-over-year.
Credit volume rose by 11%, and debit volume increased by 8% from last year. Globally processed transactions grew by 11% year-over-year.
Further, the U.S. payment volume is well ahead of the pre-pandemic levels. For the current quarter, the volume is 147% of 2019. Also, processed transactions across the world are 140% of 2019.
The company has also witnessed cross-border transaction volume growth of 22% from the previous year. Visa noted that cross-border travel into and from the Asia Pacific region improved considerably from 2019 levels, while cross-border travel volume into the U.S. showed modest improvement.
Is Visa a Buy Stock?
Robust momentum in consumer payments along with a rebound in cross-border travel is likely to keep supporting Visa’s performance. Further, encouraging payments volume data keeps us optimistic about Visa’s topline growth in Q422.
Interestingly, Visa has been consistently increasing dividends for over a decade. Currently, the dividend is $0.45 per share. Also, it is trading at a P/E ratio of 30.9x, reflecting a 15% discount from its five-year average of 36.44. This discounted valuation presents a great buying opportunity for the stock.
Overall, the consensus is bullish on Visa stock, with a Strong Buy rating based on 17 Buys and one Hold. The average stock price target is $246.33, indicating upside potential of 16.3%.
